NORTHERN Storm secured a hard-fought victory over Coffs Coast Tigers with a 2-1 triumph in round 4 of the Australia Cup held at Korora.

The match got off to an explosive start as Marko Kisose of the Tigers broke through the Storm defence, unleashing a powerful shot into the top corner to put his side ahead.

Despite the early setback, both teams continued to create numerous opportunities in an exhilarating, end-to-end encounter.

However, it was the Tigers who held the slender 1-0 lead going into halftime.

Northern Storm coach Craig Caruana told his troops to trust the process and the goals will come.

“At half time, we just said we needed to have more composure and be patient with the ball and we would get more chances.

“We just had to be more clinical in front of goal and take them when they presented themselves,” he said.

The second half saw Northern Storm assert their dominance, applying relentless pressure to the Tigers’ defence.

Their efforts paid off when Bradey Megarry netted an equaliser from close range, slotting the ball into the bottom corner.

With the match finely poised and seemingly destined for penalties, Campbell Brear stepped up for Northern Storm and calmly dispatched a precise penalty into the bottom corner, securing a dramatic 2-1 victory and booking a spot in round 5.

Meanwhile, Alstonville emerged victorious with a 4-2 win over Urunga, setting up an exciting clash against Northern Storm at Alstonville in the upcoming week.

“Next game should be another good test.

“We know they are a good football team and we’ll need to be better than we were in our last few games,” Caruana said.

By David WIGLEY